It's not as big a loss as it seems. Below is a quote from the NYT though you also need to factor in the annual Motorola losses.
"When Google bought Motorola, the hardware maker had about $3 billion in cash on hand and nearly $1 billion in tax credits. So that brings the original deal’s effective price down to about $8.5 billion.
Then, Google sold Motorola’s set-top box business to Arris for nearly $2.4 billion. That lowers the effective price to roughly $6.1 billion.
Now,...

What's great is now Apple can go on a two-year update cycle for the iPad. In odd years it will be the iPad Air. In even years it will be the iPad Pro. That gives more time for development of each product.

Glad to see they put the battery indicator lights on the bottom. With previous models they were on the side, always lit up while charging, and were so bright they light up an entire room at night which is a problem if it is on your nightstand.